


Kissing the Fire Lord

by TrashTrish



Category: Avatar: The Last Airbender
Genre: Aged up Zukaang - Freeform, Bisexual Aang (Avatar), Bisexual Zuko (Avatar), First Kiss, Love Confession, M/M, POV Zuko (Avatar), Pining
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-01-01
Updated: 2020-01-01
Packaged: 2021-02-27 06:34:24
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,971
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22072606
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/TrashTrish/pseuds/TrashTrish
Summary: Six years after the end of the hundred year war Fire Lord Zuko and Avatar Aang are closer than ever.Zuko never expected to become so close to the Avatar. From enemies to best friends, the last six years have been a whirlwind for him and now, he finds himself in love with Aang, confused and scared of his feelings. He cherishes what they have and doesn't want to risk it all. But his feelings grow stronger by the day and he finds it harder to keep inside. It's time for Zuko to decide if he is willing to risk it all and confess his love for the Avatar or keep quiet to preserve the friendship they have built.
Relationships: Aang/Zuko (Avatar), Zukaang (Avatar)
Comments: 9
Kudos: 323
Collections: Forever Zukaang





	Kissing the Fire Lord

**Author's Note:**

> I have always had my own idea of what a romantic relationship between Zuko and Aang could look like. And these stories have been in my head forever now. I decided to write them down. They change some of what happens in the show, with romantic relationships, and the comics would change too. But I believe the heart and soul of the story remains. Zukaang means so much to me and I hope people enjoy it too.
> 
> I hope to grow this universe of characters and I hope to explore more of the world and it's history as I write more of the stories. But for now I leave you with the very first Zukaang fic I ever wrote.

The day had been long and tiring for Zuko. Hours of talking with the heads of other nations about their plans for the future was something he had grown used to, but there were some days, when things dragged on, he found himself feeling drained. The only bright side was having Aang at his side through the whole process. His best friend knew him better than anyone else, made him feel more at peace with the world than he ever felt alone or with another person, was the man working alongside him every single day to find a way to bring more peace and harmony to the world after one hundred years of fighting between his nation and the others. They had a dream that one day there would be a place in the world where everyone could live, regardless of whether they were a bender or not, regardless of where they come from. It was not an easy dream to achieve but it was one they were passionate about. 

He couldn't remember the exact date his feelings had started to change. It had taken him a while to realise, after all Aang was four years younger than him, and had only turned 18 a few months ago, but somewhere along the timeline of their close friendship, his feelings stopped being purely platonic and the love he felt for the man became a love men and women shared in marriage. It happened as naturally as the night and day where you could easily forget to pay attention and miss the change of time. And Zuko hadn't been paying attention to his feelings until he had fallen so hard and fast and irrevocably in love that there was no way he would ever not love Aang. The day he realised was a day he would never forget. That morning he had felt no different, or so he thought, but by the time night had fallen, he had come to realise that the man sitting across from him, with a look of gentle concentration on his face, as they agonised over their plans for a place they could build to bring everyone together, was wedged so deeply inside his heart that he could not imagine a world without him in it.

It was strange for him to think, that even in the last year, he had become a man so different from the one he was destined to be just a few years ago. Aang had inspired him to be a better person. Not just for Aang, even if he was an at the time unknown inspiration for him, but for himself. So he could look in the mirror and not see a monster staring back at him. And it was why he wanted so desperately to turn and tell Aang how he felt. To pour his heart out to the man who meant the world to him. But a lack of confidence kept him from doing anything but stare up at the stars, longing for the strength and courage to be honest about his feelings.

"Zuko, is everything alright?" Aang asked him gently.

"Everything's fine. I'm just tired," Zuko replied. "It has been one hell of a long day."

Aang laughed. "It sure has. Do you want to get some sleep?"

Zuko shook his head. "I'd like to stay out here for another while."

Aang didn't say anything in response. He just stared at him, a piercing stare that felt like he was looking his physical self, right into his very soul. It was such an intimate stare, so agonisingly intimate it made Zuko want to run and hide so his feelings wouldn't slip out.

A braver man would have looked back, but Zuko was too afraid of the consequences of looking at the man next to him. He knew it would be too easy to reveal more than he was ready to reveal. Talking to Aang came so easily to him now. A few years ago never would have believed he would end up here. Aang was his motivation for so long, the person who gave him hope that his honor would be restored. He had spent a short period of his life searching for the man, wanting to capture and take him home. They were the greatest of enemies. And now, Aang was the person he opened up with more than anyone. He never had to watch what he was saying or think about it really. He knew Aang would never judge him or make him feel bad. He had grown so comfortable in the man's presence that he now feared he was too comfortable and would mess up everything they had spent so long building. As fierce as his love for Aang burned, he didn't want to risk losing his presence in his life, even if it was agonising at times to live with the want and fear of the unknown.

"Zuko..."

His heart started pounding at how gently Aang spoke his name.

Aang covered his resting hand with his own and Zuko's breath caught in his throat. With a shaky breath he glanced over at the man beside him.

Aang lifted his hand and placed it on Zuko's waist and turned him around ever so gently, until they were face to face. Zuko could hardly breathe. The closeness between them was intense but it wasn't close enough. He wanted to remove the space between them but he was frozen by his own fear. He didn't know what to expect.

Aang pulling him in for a kiss was not it. But that's exactly what Aang did. At first Zuko didn't, couldn't move. Aang's hands were now on the back of his head, tangling slightly in his hair and his lips were pressed against his own, kissing him with a fervor he had never felt before. The kiss was everything he could have ever imagined. Awkward and messy but with so much power and intensity that it made up for whatever clumsiness existed between them. Aang was pressed up against him, their bodies the closest they had ever been and Zuko felt more secure, more at home, than he ever had in his entire life. This was the most perfect feeling in the world and Zuko knew that no matter what happened after this, he would always remember his one perfect moment with the person he loved more than everything in the world.

When they finally pulled apart, they were both smiling. His was hesitant, but Aang's was as beautiful and vibrant as he was.

"I hope that was okay," Aang said. "I thought you would do it but then I realised that's not you. At least not yet. So I took the initiative."

Zuko didn't have the words yet, so he pulled Aang in for another kiss. Their second kiss was far less clumsy than their first. It wasn't as intense as their first but he hoped it conveyed exactly how he felt to Aang, in a way he couldn't find the words to do. They kissed themselves breathless and Zuko didn't care at all.

"I've wanted to do that for so long but I was so afraid to tell you how I feel. I don't want to ruin what we have and I'm afraid I'll mess it up like I've messed up so many things before."

Aang smiled. "And how do you really feel?"

It was time to take a chance. So he did.

"I love you."

The words slipped out easily it surprised him but not enough to stop him from continuing..

"I don't know exactly when it happened but a while ago I realised I no longer saw you as this kid who was just a friend, or even just my best friend, you became so much more important to me than anyone else. I always knew I liked guys and not just girls. But even when I dated I never felt the extra hard draw to anyone. Then we became friends and I realised I enjoyed your company and when we started spending time out here I got so comfortable and it was easy. So easy that I stopped paying attention to how I was feeling. And before I knew it I was in love with you like I've never been in love before. You know me better than anyone else and when I'm with you I feel more myself than I know how to process, because I'm so used to being what other people want me to be. But with you I have learned so much about who I am as a person and I don't know if you feel the same as me but I want you to know."

Aang cut him off by cupping his face. "Zuko, I've been in love with you since we were both scared kids."

"Really?" his voice was shaking.

"Yes," Aang said quietly. "I realised I had feelings for you after Katara and I decided we were better off as friends. I didn't say anything because I knew our ages made it a little awkward back then, not to mention we both had some growing left to do before we were ready."

"I still had a lot of growing to do."

Aang shook his head. "I wasn't sure you felt the same way until recently and then I didn't want to spook you. I know these kinds of feelings for men are scary for you."

"I love you so much," he said to Aang feeling the emotional punch of the words.

Aang's smile was the sweetest smile. Sometimes it was hard to believe Aang had been through so much in his 18 years of life. His optimism and joy was like a blanket Zuko never wanted to get out from under. "I love you, too."

Zuko kissed Aang's nose.

Aang's smile widened.

"Aang?"

"Yeah."

"Can we keep this quiet for a little while? I want to figure out how we do this, before telling people."

The smile on Aang's face was almost teasing. "I think you'll find that a little hard. Toph's on to us."

"She is?" Zuko tried to figure out if there was anything that would have given how he felt away. He guessed Aang might have told her how he felt or maybe she could read him since they were so close. But how did she figure it out about him? And was it obvious to everyone?

"She's been teasing us for years now. Don't you remember?"

Zuko did remember some throwaway comments the last couple of times they were all together. At the time he thought Toph was being a little weird and maybe trying to tell him he needed a girlfriend. But it all made sense. She was as good as his uncle was at reading people and she had the bonus of telling when people were lying, so maybe she could sense the internal conflict in his head those times. Maybe she picked up on the nervous energy he had been giving off.

"I remember. So do we tell her first? Or do we tell everyone together?"

Aang shrugged. "What do you feel most comfortable with? Sokka and Katara will understand whatever we decide to do."

He didn't know the answer to that question. But he knew he didn't need to be thinking about that right now. He had time. Right now, he just wanted to spend the next few days enjoying his time with Aang as they explored their new relationship together.

It was like Aang knew what he was thinking because he pulled him in for another kiss.

No other words were spoken between them the rest of the night. No other words were needed. They had each other and that was all they were ever going to need.


End file.
